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Yumm Bowl

Yumm Bowl

I was asked by a mother-daughter group in Gig Harbor, Washington to teach a class on healthy meals that lend to the bonding experience our kitchens can provide between parent and child.  I was more than excited for this class because of my strong belief in creating deeper relationships with our loved ones through richly nourishing meals. I grew up in a home where we worked as a family to create these foundations of our health. What better gift than to teach our children how to prepare real food. Because of my parents commitment to whole food and healthy living, I now enjoy the making of my families memories while preparing our delicious traditions in the kitchen.

I created my own version of this Yumm Bowl from a recipe that was introduced to me by my Tante (aunt in German and Swiss) Meg.  Like I do with most recipes that inspire me, I modified this one to tailor to my families food sensitivities and to add even more colorful nutrients.  This recipe is perfect for families as children tend to have different taste buds that can be fickle from one day to the next!  With so many vegetables to choose from, our little ones can choose their favorites for this meal. Have your children appreciate the rainbow of colors in this dish and realize that the color of the vegetables is where the rich nutrients come from, which allows our bodies to have a healthy immune system.  I went to my local farmers market to pick up all the delicious ingredients.  Be flexible with this recipe to make it your own, such as using vegetables that are in season.  Have fun and enjoy!

Servings: 4-6

Yumm Sauce:

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup grape seed, canola or extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup almond meal or finely chopped almonds (sunflower or pumpkin seeds are fine here for nut allergy replacers)
1/3 cup nutritional yeast
1 cup cooked garbanzo beans
2 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried cilantro

Yumm Bowl:

4 cups brown rice, cooked
2 cups black beans, cooked
1 cup, diced fresh tomato
1/4 medium purple cabbage, thinly sliced
1 avocado, pit removed and thinly sliced
1 bell pepper, stem and seeds removed and chopped
1 medium yellow squash or zucchini, ends removed and grated
2 medium carrots, peeled then grated
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 can black olives, sliced

Directions For The Yumm Sauce:

  1. Combine the water and lemon juice in a small bowl and set aside.  Measure out the oil and set aside.
  2. In a food processor or high powered blender, blend the almonds, nutritional yeast, garbanzo beans, garlic, salt, curry, oregano, and cilantro until almost fully ground.
  3. While still blending, add the lemon juice and water mixture.  Next, slowly add the olive oil and blend until smooth.
  4. Transfer the sauce to a jar or gravy mote for serving.

Yumm Bowl Preparation:

  1. In an individual serving bowl, scoop some brown rice and place black beans on top.  Drizzle desired amount of Yumm sauce over the beans and rice.
  2. Next add the remaining vegetables and cilantro to garnish to your taste.

Enjoy!

 

Vege-full Meatloaf

Vege-full Meatloaf

I love spicing up a traditional recipe. I add lots of vegetables, herbs and spices to enhance this protein rich dish. Protein is a major building block for our muscles, hormones, neurotransmitters and immune system to name a few.  I also love the simplicity and flexibility of  this recipe. Prep time is approximately 15 minutes, an additional bonus.  I always triple or quadruple the recipe to throw three other meals in the freezer for a later date. I freeze the meatloaf raw.  Use any ground meat that you prefer or 3 cups of cooked French lentils for a vegan or vegetarian approach. If you have access to elk or venison, please use these meats as they nourish the blood while being anti-inflammatory. Elk and deer graze on their natural diet of grasses and shrubs, thus concentrating richer amounts of omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids. Grass fed organic beef is also higher in omegas than grain fed beef.  This translates as being healthier for you by lowering your cholesterol consumption while getting the rich source of iron that meat provides. I will recommend to my patients who are iron deficient to eat meat as heme iron sources are easily absorbed compared to vegetable sources of iron. For those patients who do not eat meat, I simply recommend adding lemon or other rich sources of Vitamin C to their vegetables to help absorb the iron.

Serves: 4

Temp: 350 deg. F

1 pound ground meat
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 onion, diced
1 large carrot, grated
1 cup spinach, chopped
2 tablespoons Worcester sauce
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 egg or the equivalent of 2 egg replacers
8 oz. tomato sauce

  1. Combine all ingredients and mix until well blended.
  2. Place meatloaf in a bread pan. Pour 8 ounces of tomato sauce over the top of the meatloaf and bake for 45 minutes or until sides are bubbling and center of loaf is well done.

Enjoy!

Cashew Stuffed Mushrooms with Pesto

Cashew Stuffed Mushrooms with Pesto

I made this appetizer for my work Christmas Party.  This is a simple recipe with rich and creamy flavors.  I used the pesto cubes I froze last week.  I make cashew cheese to replace dairy in many of my savory recipes.  Cashews are an excellent source of magnesium, copper, manganese, tryptophan and mono-unsaturated fats.  Magnesium is great for bone and muscle health preventing muscle spasm and low bone density.  Copper is used for antioxidant defense, energy production and bone and vessel health.  Tryptophan is an amino acid that is particularly important in serotonin production for mood stability.  The mono-unsaturated fats found in cashews are very healthy for your heart.  The particular mono-unsaturated fatty acid found in cashews is called oleic acid, which is also found in olive oil.  Research has found these to be extremely cardioprotective, particularly in people with diabetes.  The nutritional yeast I used  is a rich source of Vitamin B12, essential in preventing anemia particularly in the vegetarian and vegan lifestyles.

Enjoy!

Servings: 30 Mushrooms

1 cup raw cashews
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
3 cloves garlic
30 mushrooms
1/2 cup pesto
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.  For the cashew cheese, in a food processor, combine the cashews, water, nutritional yeast, sea salt and garlic and blend until evenly combined.
  2. Remove the stem from the mushrooms and put them cavity up on a lightly olive oiled baking sheet.  Spoon the cashew cheese into the cavity and then dollop pesto on top.  Drizzle the olive oil over the prepared mushrooms and then place in preheated oven and bake until mushrooms are tender and filling is light golden, approximately 20 minutes.
  3. Serve hot or cool.  I thinly sliced basil and sprinkled it over the mushrooms and then drizzled olive oil over the baked mushrooms to garnish.

 

 

 

 

Lemon Basil Cod

Lemon Basil Cod

Tonight we walked down to Northern Fish Company on Ruston Way.  I love to buy our seafood from them because it is always fresh and delicious.  I wanted to buy some cod for a quick and healthy meal for our friends who were coming over.  I had just ten minutes of preparation time before they arrived.  I turned the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit for the fish.  I quickly put 2 cups of organic quinoa and sprouted rice mix  from TruRoots into four cups of water with a dash of sea salt and covered with a lid.  I placed it on the stove to bring to a boil and then reduced it to a simmer for 15 minutes.  Meanwhile,  I pulled the cod out and began its quick preparation while the oven preheated and the grain simmered.  Who says healthy cannot be in minutes!  I love cod because it is not as expensive as other white fish such as halibut, it cooks within 20 minutes, and it is a great protein source without being high in Mercury.

Enjoy!

Serves: 4

2 pounds cod, rinsed and dried
1/4 cup fresh basil,  removed from stem and sliced into thin strips
1 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons  extra virgin olive oil
1/ 2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Place rinsed and dried cod on parchment paper or aluminum foil on a baking sheet with sides.
  3. Drizzle the lemon juice and olive oil evenly over the cod.  Sprinkle the sea salt, pepper and basil evenly over the cod.
  4. Place the cod in preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes.  The cod should easily flake but not be dry when done.

 

Tony’s Perfect Protein Smoothie

Tony’s Perfect Protein Smoothie

In honor of my husbands birthday, I wanted to share one of the recipes he makes for me most mornings.  In addition to being a fast and delicious breakfast, smoothies can pack a powerful nutrient punch. I like to add chia seeds for their great source of omega 3 and 6 fatty acids, fiber, and protein.  If  you have a child or adult in the family that needs to gain weight, substitute canned coconut milk  for the rice milk.  Also, add avocado and more nut or seed butter to increase healthy fat to the shake.  Add other greens such as kale, Swiss chard and beet greens for a good source of iron, calcium, magnesium and Vitamin K.  If you have a high powered blender, put fresh greens directly into the blender after rinsing.  If you do not, just rinse the greens, dry them on a towel, chop them into 1 inch stripes and freeze.  Freezing the greens will cause the cells to expand and burst open, allowing for the greens to blend into a fine powder and also allows you to access the nutrients within the greens much easier.  I also like to add nutritional yeast or Brewer’s yeast buds for a great source of B vitamins and minerals.  Nutritional yeast is an excellent source of Vitamin B12 for those individuals who do not eat meat.

Enjoy!

Serving size: approximately 3 cups

1 1/2 cups unsweetened rice milk
1/2 cup frozen blueberries or mixed berries
1/2 bananna
1 cup packed fresh spinach
1 tablespoon chia seeds
1 tablespoon nut or seed butter of your choice
1 teaspoon nutritional yeast or brewers yeast buds if on hand

Blend all ingredients until smooth and serve.